Donau Walzer: Linz

Overnight, the ship was moored in the industrial town of Linz, Austria. Most of the folks on the cruise were traveling on by tour bus to the town of Salzburg, where the Sound of Music was made and the birthplace of Mozart. My mom was going on that. But there was no accommodation for my nap on that full day excursion, so I decided to stay on and discover Linz.

Here is the first photo I took as I exited the ship. It is looking up river; note the buildings on both sides. The Lentos Art Museum is on the left and the glass building on the right is the Ars Electronica Center which was lit up at night. In this photo, in this distance, you can see the Pöstlingberg-Kirche: pilgrimage church on the Pöstlingberg hill. This photo looks back at the Viking Legend. A closer photo of the Lentos that shows that the patterns in the glass are made by printing the museum's name on the glass. Another closeup. Another view that frames the glass building across the Danube. And one final view that frames an onion domed church across the river. Colorful spring flowers decorate the space in front of the high "Pestsäule" ("plague column", also known as "Dreifaltigkeitssäule" (Dreifaltigkeit means Holy Trinity)) which was built to remember the people who died in the plague epidemics in the town square. A closer view of the column. A building in the square. A view of the St. Ignatius Cathedral, built by Jesuits in 1669-78, it has a fairly simple exterior with onion domed twin towers and the usual baroque excesses in the interior. A view down the street to St. Michael & Ursula Church. The door to St. Ignatius. Two solid marble statues of a woman are in use for a holy water fonts in the church. Yikes! Fancier than what is in Rome! The chancel was very ornate, too bad the photo is so dark. Again, my photo of the altar is too dark to appreciate how ornate it really is. However, the intricate woodwork on these pews can be clearly seen. Here is the other holy water font.

Outside the church this wooden tower was being buit and I have no idea what it was for.

This is a side altar in the St. Michael & Ursula Church. The chancel and main altar are in this photo. The chancel is still somewhat ornate. Another side altar. Looking up at the towers of the church. Whoever put in that airconditioner should be shot.

These are shoes in a store window. The kicks in the center are €200.

This might be a rectory, though it looks quite a bit like a church.

Walking away from St. Michael & Ursula.

A bishop's residence is fronted by blooming magnolias and pollarded trees. It was erected in 1718-25 and has its own chapel. The New Cathedral [completed in 1924] can be seen when looking back towards town from the residence. Unfortunately I did not have the energy to visit it.

A view of the Elizabeth Church, built in 1763-68. This is of historical significance only. [?] But here are the altar and chancel of the church.

The Museum Francisco-Carolinum in a distance and closeup shot. A modern glass building that I liked the work on.

This wonderful glass hemidisk-shaped building held pride of place on the Danube's banks. I have no idea what it was. But here is a second view.

Here is the Ars Electronica lit up at night. This photo leaves much to be desired.


The most exciting news of the day is that I finally found and purchased my lederhosen! There was a little shop and the people there were very nice. The lederhosen all fit me quite well! I also bought a pretty little blouse that was on sale for  €39! Here is the blouse, front and back and the lederhosen. They look really cute on!

Mom returned from the full day tour of Salzburg and said it was a tourist trap. But she went off on her own for lunch as had a terrific plate of schinkenfleckerl. I was very jealous!

Next our destination is Melk!

Donau Walzer: Passau 3

At this point in the tour, we reached the rear of St. Stephan's cathedral, which is where the Bishop's residence is. the next photos are of the fountain in this area. The Bishop's residence is the blue building. Inside is a famous crucifix; though my photo is too crappy to see it well. The plaster work and fresco are also quite well known. I thought just the door was enchanting and took a photo of it. The cathedral is best known for its 5 organs, which are the second largest in the world. There are two photos of the organ over the entry to the cathedral; one of which shows the side organs. Here is the altar in the cathedral. The cathedral has the fifth organ in the dome of this ceiling. The altar sculpture is a modern work. The chancel is ornate and covered in gold leaf. I noticed that the red marble balisters were exactly the same as the ones in Rome in churches built in this time period [1600's], including the Vatican. Here is the fourth organ, at the side of the main altar. This is a close up of the marble work on a side altar and a distance shot of a side altar that includes railing, altar, frescos, statues, and bas reliefs. Here is the entry to the cathedral with the three towers with green onion domes.


We were released from our tour guide and let go on our own. We decided to shop. The first shop we saw was a chocolate shop! I was amazed by their displays and took two photos before the owner frowned at me. Mom bought some for one of her pals back home. Mom was extremely patient while I tried on lederhosen. But I was not happy with the fit of them; all were too low waisted. The shop lady actually tried to pull them up on me so hard that she lifted me! So I bought nothing. But we had joy at a jewelery shop where we found earrings and a ring fashioned into the distel flower in silver and enamel.

Back on our boat, we only had to cruise a wee bit, and we were in Austria. I took a photo of the typical houses there. It seems that someone had more luck than I did with purchasing lederhosen [black is for married men]. He posed smiling, and then when asked to look German, he put on a serious face.

Tomorrow we are in Linz!